Cristiano Ronaldo will replace the injured Anthony Martial when Manchester United welcome Omonia Nicosia to Old Trafford on Thursday.
Manchester United will be eager to continue the recent winning run when they play hosts to Omonia Nicosia at Old Trafford in a UEFA Europa League tie on Thursday. And Erik ten Hag has a new injury concern hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Anthony Martial picked up a hip injury this past weekend against Everton. And the Frenchman will be unavailable to take on Omonia on Thursday. Harry Maguire, Axel Tuanzebe, Brandon Williams, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, and Donny van de Beek are the other absentees for Manchester United.
While ten Hag did not explicitly reveal the team news in his pre-match press conference, he spoke about possibly resting some players. Christian Eriksen was one of the subjects the Manchester United boss discussed on Wednesday.
“All the players, we have to manage their game-time and that is what I do. That is why we have double positions. But we need players who have quality. So if players have issues, players can come in, and this is good.”
With ten Hag determined to secure three points on a priority basis on Thursday, Eriksen might continue in the starting lineup. The Danish playmaker will line up alongside Scott McTominay. McTominay will miss the weekend game against Newcastle United due to suspension, so he will replace Casemiro here.
Meanwhile, Lisandro Martinez is a booking away from a one-match suspension in the UEFA Europa League. So Raphael Varane should replace the Argentine as Victor Lindelof’s partner at the heart of the Manchester United defence. But Luke Shaw and Diogo Dalot should retain their spots as the full-backs.
Erik ten Hag has shown no inclination to rest David de Gea, and the Spaniard should start ahead of Martin Dubravka again. Meanwhile, the Manchester United boss had some positive things to say about Ronaldo in his presser.
The Manchester United manager said. “He is getting in better shape now so he can contribute more to the squad and that is good for him.”
Ronaldo should start in place of the injured Martial, spearheading the attack against Omonia. Jadon Sancho and Antony should be the two wide attackers, with the former replacing Marcus Rashford, who picked up a knock against Everton. Finally, Bruno Fernandes will reprise his usual no. 10 role.
Predicted Manchester United XI: de Gea; Dalot, Varane, Lindelof, Shaw; McTominay, Eriksen; Antony, Bruno Fernandes, Sancho; Ronaldo
